Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Around my office there are a few people who choose to call me a Social Media Guru. I looked up the definition of "guru"...

1. Hinduism & Tibetan Buddhism A personal spiritual teacher.

2. a. A teacher and guide in spiritual and philosophical matters.

b. A trusted counselor and adviser; a mentor.

3.

a. A recognized leader in a field: the guru of high finance.

b. An acknowledged and influential advocate, as of a movement or idea: "In a culture that worships slimness, he was the Guru of Lean"(Erica Abeel).

I am fairly confident that I'm not looked upon as any kind of spiritual leader, unless social media and online networking could be seen as a spiritual journey. I suppose that for some, it is... but anywhooo, that's not what my co-workers are talking about, I'm sure. Although... I did round up a few to go with me to see the Dalai Lama this spring... hmmm... Okay, no, probably not.

Instead, I'm thinking 2.b. is possible, or, on a very small scale (i.e. my office) 3.a. is more likely. I manage the Facebook page, Twitter account, electronic newsletter distribution, and weekly blog for my employer, and based on my level of understanding of social media functions and analytics, I guess I am comfortable being called a Guru. I kind of dig Goddess a little more, truth be told...

But all that is irrelevant, really, to the Guru status that has now been afforded me by a completely new group of people. I follow a website called Girlfriendology that is aimed at - you guessed it - women. It's a place to find advice on everything, articles, chat forums... all just for women. (They will actually delete requests for membership from men.) The other day I saw in their Twitter feed that they were looking for guest bloggers. Well, you know me, I don't pass up an opportunity for fame and fortune! I read through the requirements and decided that I'd rather ask them more about the Girlfriend Guru program than guest blogging...so, I sent in a propopsal. You see, a Girlfriend Guru is someone who, as the definition implies, is an expert at something and writes regular blog posts about that thing they are expert in. I do feel I am an expert in a LOT of things... and I like to write, soooo....

I tossed them the idea of letting me write a monthly column that offers DIY tips and projects centered around decorating with rethunque junque (clever, no??). One project a month, and I'll take photos and walk the readers step-by-step through the projects from start to finish. The way I see it, this endeavor will kill two birds with one VERY large stone. I'll get more of my writing out there AND I'll get a ton of projects that are waiting in my garage DONE. MAJOR Win/Win. My husband would like to do a happy dance, but he's playing it cool.

I've sent a few ideas to them to post on their Facebook page to let fans vote on; four ideas for my first project that I could tackle over the next few weeks. I'm really excited about this new thing... I need a bit more focus for my writing and my project-completion, so even though this is a pro-bono thing (okay, that's a bummer), it's going to be a great addition to the resume and it will get some space cleared in my garage. Not a bad trade-off. Plus, how could I pass up the opportunity to post another awesome orange badge on my blog??

Head over to Girlfriendology yourself, sign up, and tell them I sent you. Then be sure to check back to read my posts and get some great DIY ideas!

Saturday, August 13, 2011

I am so envious of those awesome bloggers that I follow who blog every day. I realize that most of them are running decorating or design businesses, and that they make updating their blog part of their daily work schedule. I realize that I work outside my home for 8 hours a day and that makes doing a daily update a little more difficult. But given the fact that this blog hasn't been updated since early July, I still feel like a ridiculous slacker. But enough whining...

So, my sister and I had an aMAYzing trip to Chicago!! The DMB Caravan was out of this world. So worth the trip, even with the dirt (see below...) and heat and crazy people. Dave and crew presented completely different concerts each of the three nights - and the other bands on the schedule didn't disappoint at all. Some favorites: Gomez, David Gray, Tim Reynolds, Ray LaMontagne, and Michael Franti. The festival food was even yummy AND priced reasonably. We discovered a food company called .evol that made really, really yummy little burritos (and we didn't even have the munchies!). They were handing them out for free, and we had more than one each. Maybe more than two... I think they sell their products at Whole Foods, and they're worth looking for.

Of course, we had to do some treasure-hunting on the way to and from Chicago. Let me tell you, the flea markets and antique malls between here and there did NOT disappoint. We were bummed that we only had a trunk and not a truck or even a covered trailer to fill up. Next time... We brought home some lovely things for ourselves and for sharing with our fans, and have plans to make a road trip every few months to bring back some things that we just don't find around here very often.

On the way back we stopped at a flea market called The Pink Elephant that not only added to our stash in the car, but also had a little ice cream stand outside that was worth stopping for in and of itself.

Today we stopped by a little shop called Red Hill Gallery owned by a great couple of ladies in Fayetteville. We have been wanting to sell some Junque Rethunque things there for a while, and finally talked seriously about it. Erin left some of her upcycled dessert/cake plates for them to sell, and I have been asked to create some buntings and other items out of vintage fabrics. After spending about an hour with sweet Cari, we are both really excited about creating some new things and getting the Junque Rethunque brand in front of more people.

"Awwww...." moment: While talking to a friend of ours today we mentioned not having spent any time together since the road trip and needing some "sister time". Our friend said that she is the opposite when it comes to her sister - that she's usually ready to get away from her. I'm so glad that I can say that my sister and I truly don't feel that way at all. We share so many interests, we have so much to talk about, and we have so many things that we want to do together... siblings like that are truly a wonderful thing. I'm so thankful to have brothers and a sister that I would like to spend more time with, not less.

So, did anyone get in on the action at the Bargains Galore on 64 this weekend? We had hoped to go check it out, but just didn't make it. There's always next year... If you went, what fun things did you find??